What It Is: Boscia describes their konjac sponge as : "A pillow-soft sponge made with natural, high-quality ingredients that cleanses and exfoliates to deliver smoother, softer, brighter-looking skin". WTF is konjac you ask? Nothing more than a tree root, so you know it's not loaded with chemicals, parabens, or tested on animals. Japanese people have been using it in their beauty routines since the dawn of time, and let's face it, have you EVER seen a Japanese person with BAD skin? Nope.

Where To Get It: $15 at www.sephora.com

My Take: I'm not going to lie, when I first saw these sponges circulating on the internet I assumed they were just a fancy Buff Puff (If you don't remember those, you're probably really young and I hate you). But I was wrong...the konjac sponge is much different, and not just another harsh way to remove dead skin. When you first take it out of the package, it's about the texture of a pumice stone. Get it wet and it turns into this pillowy-soft blob of amazingness. Of course every company wants you to use their cleanser, but I just used it with the Perricone I had one hand. Also let it be known that I exfoliate my face a LOT between my Clarisonic and other various gritty scrubs. But this thing got my face sooooo super clean it almost squeaked, without being harsh or scratchy feeling. There were also definitely some light exfoliation benefits, making this a great product for people with sensitive skin. I was super impressed. It also seems to make me need less of my cleanser, because any type of foaming cleanser I have used it with has gotten extra bubbly, and yet seems to rinse off easier.

The Bottom Line: Will the Boscia sponge replace my Clarisonic? Heck no, but I'm pretty sure that extreme exfoliation isn't what it's meant for. But as far as everyday washing, it has won me over. No more washcloths or bare hands for me!

Whether it's coming off a super cold winter, or a blistering hot day in the summer, all of us can get flaky lips from time to time. And as a makeup artist, believe you me, nothing will ruin the look of a cute pink gloss or a dramatic red lip like crust, dead skin parked on your pucker. While I am typically not into the whole DIY thing, I have found that paying $25 for a lip scrub that I'll probably forget I even own isn't my bag. I clutched my face in desperation and thought, "There has to be a better way!". So I got my Italian butt into the kitchen, dug around my cabinets , and this is what I came up with. A lip scrub that is so easy, it only took me about 3 minutes to make, use, and love.

What you'll need:

Oil-You can use grapeseed, castor, or almond, but I went with my catch-all oil of choice, Olive. I just sort of assumed that corn oil would leave a taste reminiscent of fried chicken.

Sugar- While I'm sure white sugar would be fine, I went with brown sugar for it's extra 'rough' factor for exfoliating. Not only does sugar have the obvious scrubbing properties of sand, it also acts as a chemical exfoliant, meaning it can help get rid of dead cells too small to even see or feel.

Flavoring Extract- This is totally optional, but I decided to add some peppermint extract for some kick

-"Hey, sweetie!"-"Well, aren't YOU slick?"

Next, simply combine your above ingredients in a ceramic bowl, making sure to thoroughly smash up the sugar, leaving no big lumps. I found the ratio of 1:1 parts of oil and sugar to give me the exact texture that I wanted. Still nice and grainy, but with enough oil to actually add some slip and moisturizing properties to my scrub. I used about a teaspoon of each, plus one drop of peppermint extract.

That sugar didn't stand a chance...

Once you have all of your ingredients thoroughly beaten, simply smear it all over your kisser, making sure to use repeated circular motions to sweep off that nasty coating of dead skin. After a good 30 seconds of scrubbing, wipe off excess, leaving the oil behind to help hydrate your lips. Lastly finish with some good lip balm to soothe and protect your lips, and you're done!

One last thing...if chronic dry lips/skin is something that plagues you, be sure you'r drinking enough water, but also try adding a fish oil supplement to your diet. It works from the inside out, and has a million other added benefits that google or your doctor can tell you about. But what do I know, I'm just a makeup artist...with really soft lips!